A Longitudinal Study of Cognitive and Affective Behavior in a Didactic Program in Dietetics: Implications for Dietetics Education

Abstract

In response to concerns that dietetics professionals were not adequately prepared for practice ( (1) Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education. Accreditation/Approval Manual for Dietetics Education Programs. 4th ed. Chicago, Ill: American Dietetic Association; 1997. Google Scholar , (2) Pucket R.P Education and the dietetics profession. J Am Diet Assoc. 1997; 97: 252-253 Google Scholar , (3) Boudreaux L.J Shanklin C.W Johnson J.T Factors influencing success of dietitians employed in business and industry. J Am Diet Assoc. 1991; 91: 1227-1232 Google Scholar ), the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education was created to establish minimum requirements of foundation knowledge and skills for institutions that train entry-level dietitians. Subsequent research has shown that graduates of programs that comply with these competency standards are adequately prepared to enter the workforce ( (4) Karp S.S Lawrence M.L Use of the new competencies to assess entry-level dietitians. J Am Diet Assoc. 1999; 99: 1098-1100 Google Scholar ). Dietetics curriculum development has been driven by identification of requisite practice skills and knowledge, rather than learning, cognitive, or affective behaviors ( (5) Erickson-Weerts S Past, present, and future perspectives of dietetics practice. J Am Diet Assoc. 1999; 99: 291-293 Google Scholar , (6) Peterson D.A Albers J.E Merta J.R McCoy R.A Broadening career opportunities in dietetics employment in independent research. J Am Diet Assoc. 1999; 99: 799-801 Google Scholar ). Duyff ( (7) Lengacher C.A Comparative analysis of role strain and self-esteem across academic programs. Nurs Connect. 1993; 6: 33-46 Google Scholar ) expounds the benefits of a learner-centered approach, promoting lifelong learning as a key element in professional development. Lifelong learners develop from educational experiences that focus on motivation to learn, self-esteem, self-directed learning skills, conceptualization, and reflective thinking. Longitudinal studies of cognitive and affective behaviors have guided medical and nursing curriculum development ( (7) Lengacher C.A Comparative analysis of role strain and self-esteem across academic programs. Nurs Connect. 1993; 6: 33-46 Google Scholar , (8) Coles C.R Differences between conventional and problem-based curricula in their students’ approaches to studying. Med Educ. 1985; 19: 308-309 Google Scholar , (9) Higa TAF, Lindberg MA, Anderson AA, Feletti G, Brandon PR. A longitudinal study of the cognitive behavior of students enrolled in a problem-based learning medical program. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association; 1995; San Francisio, Calif. Google Scholar ). Despite this awareness ( (7) Lengacher C.A Comparative analysis of role strain and self-esteem across academic programs. Nurs Connect. 1993; 6: 33-46 Google Scholar , (11) Silagyi-Rebovich E.J Motivation and Learning Strategies Among Dietetic Students at Four Year Colleges and Universities [dissertation]. University of South Carolina, Columbia1996 Google Scholar ), studies of dietetics students’ cognitive and affective behaviors are virtually nonexistent. The purpose of this study was to examine these behaviors among students as they progress through a didactic program in dietetics to support their application to curriculum development. Portions of this research were presented in a poster session at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Resesarch Association, April 24, 2000, New Orleans, La. ErrataJournal of the American Dietetic AssociationVol. 101Issue 12Preview Full-Text PDF